Guardian Angels and the Keys of Music
by Raven Lee
Summary: One of my first fics. It is...well, it is really bad. It's Gambit, and Rogue, and Angel and..well, it sucks, but it's here anyway.
1. Part One

This is a really old, really *bad* story. A few people asked me to put it up, though, and so here it is. Don't shoot me. Remember, it is like 4 or 5 years old.  
  
Part One: Amazing  
  
Warren Worthington dipped and glided though the sky. Once again thanking God because he had his real wings back. But there was no joy in soaring with the birds and sweeping through the clouds.  
  
His dark mood was taking all the pleasure out of flying today.  
  
Shaking his head, trying to clear all thoughts from it, he swooped down below the clouds. He was over Central Park, and could see that there was some sort of concert going on.  
  
He flew lower to see two women and three men in their teens up on stage playing for all their hearts. They were playing one of Elvis's old songs, with a new, 90's, beat, and they were doing a good job of it. The crowed that had gathered were cheering on for all their worth.  
  
Warren frowned slightly. The last concert he'd been at, was when Professor Xavier had been shot. That brought back even more unpleasant memories he wished to stay buried. This certainly wasn't what he needed.  
  
He flew higher, but the music followed him, and for some reason, he couldn't bring himself to fly away. Instead he circled the park listening as the band turned to an Aerosmith song.  
  
I kept the right ones out, And let the wrong ones in, Had an angel of mercy to see me though all me sins.  
  
How many times had he pushed away people who cared about him? How many times has he shunned away from those he loved, because he felt like a monster? Letting the real monsters get close?  
  
How many times?  
  
Too many.  
  
And yet, the X-Men had always been there for him. His friends to the end, even when he felt he was going to brake, and his soul die. They were always trusting him even when he couldn't trust himself.  
  
There were times in my life, When I was goin' insane, Tryin' to walk through, The pain.  
  
But his friends had stuck by him. They had tried to help, tried to see though his pain to the old carefree Angel that he had buried deep in his mind. Even now, with his wings back, he couldn't bring himself to be so carefree again.  
  
He had been a pawn to Apocalypse for too long.  
  
Apocalypse had called himself Angel's "father". He had sold his soul, his very being to the man for wings that had never felt right. Could never feel the same. They had been a burden more then a help. Before, flying had been like nothing, his wings weightless. But with the dead weight of mettle on his back, it had been all he could do to keep standing sometimes.  
  
And the thought that in just an instant and a flap of the wings he could cut a man to shreds, had never been one of comfort.  
  
Once he'd even cut off a man's head in the heat of battle when he'd come up behind Warren. He'd never quite forgiven himself for that. He never quite forgave himself for a lot of things he did when Apocalypse gave him his mettle wings. And he may never forgive.  
  
When I lost my grip, And I hit the floor, Yeah I thought I could leave but couldn't get out the door.  
  
Just like he'd never forgive Gambit for the part he'd played in the Mutant Massacre. For bringing the Marauders together, and then setting them lose on the Morlocks. It was his fault he'd lost his old wings. His fault he'd nearly lost his very soul to that monster!  
  
Warren frowned. He had come up to the skies to fly with the birds in order to forget all that had happened, not remember. But the past dies hard, and, he realized, as long as he lived he would never forgive and forget.  
  
But Angel knew one thing for sure. If he ever saw Gambit again, if he had somehow survived Antarctica, he would kill him. He was sure he'd have no problem seeing the life slip from Gambit's eyes.  
  
His hatred was that strong.  
  
I was so sick and tired, Of livin' a lie, I was whishin' that I Would die.  
  
Had Gambit somehow wished for himself to die? Was that why Rogue had left him in Antarctica? Because his own hatred for himself was so great, that is passed on when she'd kissed him?  
  
Warren knew what it was like to wish for death. He had wished for it himself many nights. Wished he could somehow gather the nerve to walk in on a FOH meeting, and let them kill him. Wished that in battle he would be one of the ones not standing.  
  
Death was a wish made by many, but most still cherished life enough not to ever go through with their own destruction. Perhaps that was why he had never done anything to end his grief. Maybe he loved his life still. Maybe the loss of his wings really wasn't worth dying for.  
  
Or maybe he was too much of a cowered to go through with it.  
  
That one last shot's a Permanent Vacation, And how high can you fly with, broken wings?  
  
Warren almost laughed when that bit of the song reached his ears.  
  
How high? High wasn't where you got with broken wings. It was low. So low, that he had met the devil face to face, and made a deal with him. A pact that cost him his soul, and now he would never be that same Angel who had been one of Xavier's first students.  
  
He had his real wings back, but he would never be the same, the world around him had changed too much.  
  
Life's a journey not a destination, And I just can't tell just what, tomorrow brings.  
  
Tomorrow? Tomorrow brings life, or death. That was a certain. Tomorrow was a hell you just haven't lived through yet.  
  
Had the world changed? Or had he?  
  
You have to learn to crawl, Before you learn to walk, But I just couldn't listen to all that righteous talk.  
  
That sounded like something Ororo would say. Actually, once she had said something to that very affect. But he would never listen. He wanted to be alone, let his grief over come him, and live with it alone. He never told anyone of the turmoil going on inside his head. He built his blocks so the Professor, Jean and Betsy couldn't see what was going on in there.  
  
So they would never see his hurt, his pain. Maybe... it would have been easier if he had let them help him. Maybe his hatred for himself wouldn't be so strong. Maybe his hatred for Gambit wouldn't be too much for him to bare.  
  
I was out of the street, Just tryin' to survive, Scratchin' to stay, Alive!  
  
Warren searched within himself and tried desperately to see the Cajun's point of view. Did the younger man hate himself for what happened as much as Warren hated what was done to him? Did he know the pain of coming to wake at night from a dream so horrible, so awful, it made him cry out in pain just from thinking about it?  
  
Did he know what it was like to feel his soul slip away from him into a monster's grip? To feel the pain and torment of what he'd done on his back? His own personal cross to carry?  
  
Could Gambit ever know what it was like to feel his life slip away like that?  
  
Did he know?  
  
It's Amazing, With a blink of an eye you finally see the light.  
  
Warren blinked.  
  
Did he know? Did he know what it was like?  
  
He dropped from the sky, and landed softly on his feet. Lifting his face up to the sun, his eyes closed, he felt the star's warmth.  
  
Does he know? he asked himself again. He started to laugh, uncontrollably. Does he know?  
  
Gambit sold his soul to a devil too. Not Apocalypse, but Sinister. And he didn't even know what he was doing when he brought together the Marauders. Angel knew what he was doing when he let Apocalypse create his wings.  
  
What had the two gotten out of their pacts with devils? Nothing. Hatred for themselves, and many lives lost, including their own. Loss of the ones they loved. But nothing had been gained. Nothing had been saved in their souls.  
  
It's Amazing, When the moment arrives that you know you'll be alright.  
  
Warren dropped to his knees. His hands came up to hide his face, and his laughter quickly turned into tears. His brought his wings around him like a blanket, and he cried. He had dammed a man already dammed, like himself.  
  
They were brothers, he and Gambit. They had both known the hardships of greed and for a short time, both had become monsters. Both hated themselves for it. And both tried to redeem themselves.  
  
And Angel, in his own heart, his own mind, had condemned Gambit for what he'd done in the past. All without thinking about what he'd done since then. How many lives has Gambit saved since he became an X-Man? How many times had he saved Archangel?  
  
Yeah, it's Amazing, And I'm sayin' a prayer for the desperate hearts tonight.  
  
How many times had Gambit pushed away people who cared about him? How many times has he shunned away from those he loved, because he felt like a monster? Letting the real monsters get close?  
  
How many times?  
  
Too many.  
  
The X-Men had taken Warren back after his lapse with Apocalypse. They took him back in, and forgave him, and yet, they all have condimened Gambit. They all have decided he is an X-Man no more.  
  
And yet, was what he'd done any worse then what Warren himself had done? Should he be dammed more when he had shown time and time again that he was a true X-Man? A real hero?  
  
Warren let the last of his tears dry, and he looked up at the sky, at the birds dancing on the breeze. Why couldn't he get any comfort in flying with them?  
  
Could it be because his own conscience couldn't let him?  
  
"Remy." He whispered to the sky. "Wherever you are... you're still an X- Man."  
  
* * *  
  
Except for a few joggers, a few people having picnics or playing with their children, and one winged man, Central Park was empty. It had been empty all day. 


	2. Part Two

Part Two: Cryin'  
  
Rogue flew back from town, a smile on her lips. Maybe he can do somethin' f' me! Maybe my powers will be gone, then Remy an' Ah-  
  
She stopped in mid flight. She and Remy could what? She left him in Antarctica, remember? She left him in the cold to die, told him she didn't love him, that he was an X-Man no more.  
  
B-But Ah can find him! she told herself, then shook her head.  
  
He had done some bad things. She'd never forgive him for that.  
  
"But Ah love him!" she whispered to herself. It didn't matter. He didn't love her. How could he? How many lies did he tell her? Had there ever been any truths?  
  
She shook her head, clearing the thoughts from it.  
  
She was over Central Park now, and she looked down. Tears formed in her eyes at young lovers walking by the pond, kissing, holding hands. Something she'd never been able to do. Why can' that be me? She closed her eyes, wishing it would all go away.  
  
When she opened them again, she saw a bundle of wings laying on the ground. Archangel?  
  
She flew down closer. It was him! She touched ground beside him, and put a hand on one of his wings.  
  
"Warren? Sugah, you alright?" She asked. He didn't move and instead of hearing his answer, she heard music. An old song she couldn't place at first, and then another:  
  
There was a time When I was so brokenhearted Love wasn't much of a friend of mine  
  
Love a friend? Hump! Never! All the love she'd ever known was driven away by her blasted powers. All the more reason to let that doctor take them away.  
  
No more hurt, pain, or broken hearts.  
  
The tables have turned, yeah 'Cause me and them ways have parted That kind of love was the killin' kind, so listen  
  
She'd killed Cody. Gambit was probably dead too.  
  
What had she been thinking, leaving him there without a shirt? She had known he wouldn't be able to make it back.  
  
But then again, he was a survivor, if all else, he survived. Probably wasn't in the Arctic anymore either.  
  
All I want is someone I can't resist I know all I need to know by the way that I got kissed!  
  
Kissing's what got her in this mess.  
  
But she loved it. It was the most thrilling experience of her life... well the second most, but she wouldn't think about that. She couldn't without crying, or ripping something to shreds.  
  
She had just learned what all other women felt, and now... well, it was gone. If this doctor couldn't help her, she'd never feel it again.  
  
Now there's not even breathin' room Between pleasure and pain Yeah you cry when we're makin' love Must be one and the same  
  
Remy had cried. The first time she'd really seen tears in his eyes. He'd told her how beautiful she was to him, how much he loved her. He'd held her so close afterwards, and so gently, like she would break, that she had cried too.  
  
The little bit of discomfort she had first felt went away quickly, and then there was nothing but the pleasure. His soft kisses, and his professed love.  
  
His saying those three words had been the best part of all. Because as he uttered them over and over again, she knew, deep in her heart, that they were true, and that she would forgive him anything because he'd said them to her.  
  
It's down on me Yeah, I got to tell you one thin It's been on my mind Girl I gotta say We're partners in crime  
  
But she didn't forgive him everything.  
  
Because of him, hundreds were murdered. Because of him, Archangel, their friend! had lost his wings. Because of him, her heart was broken again.  
  
But was she any worse for leaving him in Antarctica? Leaving him in the cold, without a shirt? Without a hope of getting back, and only a slim chance of survival?  
  
You got that certain something What you give to me Takes my breath away  
  
He had given her her first real taste of love and passion, what had she given him? The cold shoulder, literally. His kisses... they had been lasting. She could still feel the trail his lips had made all over her face and neck.  
  
She could still see him, when he'd thought she was asleep, reach out and almost brush her face with the back of his hand. A loving caress she had never felt, because he'd pulled away too soon.  
  
Now the word out on the street Is the devil's in your kiss If our love goes up in flames It's a fire I can't resist  
  
She still wanted to feel that hand on her check. Still wanted to feel his lips brush hers. She... she wanted to be back in that cave, without their powers. She wanted to relive that night over and over again...  
  
Oh God! Had she always been so wanton?  
  
No, this is what he had done to her. It wasn't her fault, it was his!  
  
Cause what you got inside Ain't where your love should stay Yeah, our love, sweet love, ain't love Till you give your heart away, yeah ahh  
  
She gave her heart away, and look at what it got her.  
  
It was smashed to bits. Burned to flame... just like the queen of hearts card she still carried with her.  
  
And why? Because she'd been foolish enough to fall in love with someone who she knew had a past. One she knew would never tell her the whole truth.  
  
But she'd never told him the whole truth either. he didn't even know her real name! No one did. He didn't know all she had been through, or why she kept it all a secret. But she'd never done something so bad as what he'd done!  
  
I was cryin' when I met you Now I'm tryin to forget you Your love is sweet misery I was cryin' when I met you Now I'm dyin' 'cause I let you Do what you do down to, down to, down to, down to, down to... ahh  
  
Could she really blame him for not telling her, or anyone for that matter? Look at what they'd done to him when they found out. He was no longer an X- Man, cast out forever it appeared.  
  
If he showed up on their doorstep, would anyone open the door? Probably not.  
  
What would Professor Xavier say about that? Did he know? Had Gambit told him, or had the Professor ever looked that deep into the Cajun's mind to see what he hid from everyone? Did he not care, or did he think the that Gambit had redeemed himself?  
  
When she had met him, her life was just seeming to come together again. She was with people like herself, and she had friends. But had she really been happy? Did she really feel like she had belonged?  
  
No.  
  
The happiness had started when he'd started to show interest in her. Someone who knew what she was, what she could do, and yet, he had chased her. Had tried to get her to love him. It had been fun, that game.  
  
But when had it stopped being a game, and become real love? She didn't know. She just knew that she did love him, no matter what she had told him, he was her heart and soul. And now all three were probably dead. Long gone. Frozen.  
  
I was cryin' when I met you Now I'm dyin to forget you Your love is sweet I was cryin' when I met you  
  
"Get outta my head!" She cried out. She wanted him to leave her alone. But would she let him? Could she?  
  
Like Archangel, she fell to her knees, but she wouldn't cry. She hadn't done anything wrong.... What had she done? She'd left her heart to die in the cold! Is that why chills were running up and down her now? She started to cry after all. 


	3. Part Three

Part Three:  
  
*Home? You ain't got no home, sugah. Not with the X-men. Fend for yourself. You seem to have done a good job of that in the past. -Rogue UXM #350*  
  
*What is it that pulls a man in many directions as once but which at the same time also holds a man togeather? His soul.*  
  
*But what use is a soul without a heart?(1)* ***  
  
He fell again.  
  
He was tired of walking, tired of being cold. He knew the chill would never leave his bones, and he wished he could gather enough courage to charge up his clothing and let it blow himself up.  
  
But he couldn't do it.  
  
He also wished he could sleep.  
  
But he couldn't do that either.  
  
Gambit took a mouthful of snow, and felt it melt in his mouth. At least he wouldn't die of thirst. And, thanks to the supply shack he found, he didn't know how many days ago, he wouldn't be starving any time soon.  
  
He had found the shack after walking for four...maybe five days? He couldn't tell, the sun didn't set in the antarctic this time of the year. He just knew that when he felt so tired he was about to collapse, that it was probably night.  
  
He had stayed in the shack for a long time, hoping someone would come along and help him. But no one did. He was alone in the freezing tundra.  
  
The shack had clothes, snowshoes, a tent, and food. Everything he needed. Searching around he found a CB radio, but it had long since been busted, no help there. But he had found a snow mobile too. Had ridden it until its gas and the gas he'd found were used up. That was maybe three days ago?  
  
Fire paste, wood, a first aid kit, and even something to keep his fingers, toes and nose from getting frostbite had been found in the back pack with the tent. The food he carried in yet another bag, all strapped to his back.  
  
The snowshoes had taken time to get used to, but he figured them out, and now he walked like he'd been born with them. Walked for hours on end, hoping that around each bend, or just beyond the following rise, would be life. Any kind of life, he would even be happy to see the Savage Land.  
  
He didn't blame Rogue. He couldn't blame her, he loved her, that love burned more brightly then anything else. It was her face, the sound of her laughter in his ears, and ~that~ night, that kept him going. It kept him from making a fool mistake and stopping, because then he would die.  
  
It was maybe on his tenth day away from the shack that he started to hear music. Far away at first, then slowly it became clearer, until he could hear each voice, five of them, and each instrument playing. It was an old Doors' song with a faster, newer beat. One that matched the 90's perfectly.  
  
It was just over the bend, just over the next rise, a village, a town, something!  
  
He just had to keep walking, just a little bit more.  
  
*There's a candle burning in the world tonight For another child who vanished out of sight And a heart is broken, another prayer in vain There's a million tears that fill a sea of pain*  
  
That wasn't the Doors, but it was familiar. He wasn't sure who sang the song. And it made him remember things he had tried to push in the back of his mind since he'd started walking.  
  
Sarah. He had been able to save her. Grabbed her up, right out of Sabertooth's way. He'd been able to save her, but not before her little eyes had seen the death. Not before her little ears were filled with the screams and cries of her friends and family, and the evil laughter of a man Gambit wished he could kill. And not before her little heart had filled with pain that may never go away.  
  
*Sometimes I stare out my window My thoughts all drift into space Sometimes I wonder if there's a better place*  
  
He thought he could escape his past. Go to the X-Men, join, save lives. Redeem himself for what he'd done. What he'd let happen.  
  
He lied to himself.  
  
No matter what he did, how many people he saved, or helped, he was responsible for multiple deaths. Responsible for a friend losing something he cherished.  
  
Was it any wonder why he had never been able to truly look Archangel in the eye?  
  
*Now the times is frightening Can't ignore the facts There's so many people Just slippin' through the cracks*  
  
How many of the Morlocks died? How many children, adults? How many Remy?  
  
Too many to count.  
  
Go to the X-Men? Redeem himself? Try and save his soul?  
  
Ha! As if it could be saved!  
  
He had just been kidding himself  
  
*So many ashes are scattered So many rivers run dry Sometimes your Heaven is Hell and you don't know why*  
  
His Heaven had been realized in that cave with Rogue. He had had sex before, but before then, he'd never made love. And that's what it had been, love. She had loved him...and he had loved her, the first person he'd really ever truly cared enough about to say those words and mean them with all his heart.  
  
Oh the words had been there, every lover he'd ever taken he'd whispered those words in their ear, but had he ever meant it as much as he had whispering it to Rogue?  
  
No.  
  
It had been his Heaven. But his Hell too, because she loved him...and she knew nothing about him. She knew nothing about the pain, hurt...death he had caused.  
  
The Morlocks' blood was on his hands.  
  
His hands?  
  
Be serious, Remy!  
  
He was bathed in it! It'd never come off.  
  
*Can you hear me Can you hear me Somewhere out there there's a shining light And I got to be with you tonight*  
  
All he wanted was to be there for all the things Rogue was going through. He wanted to wash his memories from her mind, not so she'd forgive him, that would never happen, but so she wouldn't have to live with the thoughts. With the pain.  
  
And with all we're nowhere We still pay the price Yeah the devil seems to get his way In downtown paradise, yeah  
  
He thought he had left it all behind him when he joined the X-Men. Thought he could hide from the past, hide his shame. He thought that he would forget over time, that the pain would just go away.  
  
But there was a price. In everything there was a price. It was his soul. He'd given it to the devil, to Sinister, and for what?  
  
Nothing.  
  
He'd lost the only place he could call home. Just like he'd lost his poppa, he lost his friends. And Rogue.  
  
Losing Belle hadn't felt as bad.  
  
He knew it would come to this! He knew! His was a damned soul the very day Jean-Luc LeBeau had pulled him off the streets, and he hadn't changed at all since then. He knew he would live a life in Hell...  
  
So then why had it hurt so much to watch as Rogue flew off without so much as a backward glance? Why did his heart, already broken and smashed to pieces so long ago, hurt like it had been torn from his chest?  
  
Why?  
  
*Where do fallen angels go, tell me I just don't know (I just don't know) Where do fallen angels go They keep falling (falling), falling (falling), falling (falling), yeah  
  
There's a candle burning*  
  
Gambit dropped to his knees. This time he wouldn't get up. He didn't want to find the people playing the music. He had no home, no life, might as well go to Hell now instead of later.  
  
He put his head on his crossed arms for a pillow, and fell asleep. *** (1) This is from the end of UXM #350 but the last part about his heart I added myself. 


	4. Part Four

Part Four:  
  
Warren felt someone press close to him. Gently, he lifted his wings off himself and looked. It was Rogue, she was crying, her gloved hands pressed to her face, her shoulders shaking so badly she looked like she couldn't stay on her feet.  
  
Ever so gently, making sure he didn't touch any bare flesh, he wrapped his arms and wings around her. She stiffened slightly at first, then through her own arms around his neck, crying her tears out on his chest.  
  
Had she heard the music too? Had it hurt her as much as it had him? It must have. Strange, but he couldn't hear it anymore. The song, ~Amazing~, was gone. Nothing else had followed it. No cheers, no sound of the band saying thank you's and taking bows, no more music, nothing. But it had been enough. He knew what he had to do now.  
  
"Rogue?" He asked gently, pushing her by her shoulders away from him. "Are you okay?"  
  
She nodded and wiped the tears from her eyes. "Ah-Ah'm sorry. Ah just...did yah hear th' music?"  
  
"Yes." He said standing. He pulled her up with him. "I think it worked on me the same way it did you. I- We need to go find Gambit, Rogue. We shouldn't have done what we've done."  
  
She shook her head. "Ah'm not goin', Angel. He- he did too much to me." She pushed away from him and turned around, wrapping her arms around herself. "Ah... Ah just can't."  
  
"And what did he do to me? Is your pain any worse then mine? I'm going Rogue, and you're coming with me! We have to find him, he's still one of us!"  
  
She shook her head, and started away. "Ah can't," she said in her smallest voice.  
  
Warren just stared at her back, not knowing what to do.  
  
*** Of course there was no choice. She had to come, and come she did--after Warren flew back to the mansion and grabbed a pair of adamantium handcuffs, along with some warmer clothes.  
  
She wouldn't cooperate though, at least not until he threatened to dump her into the Arctic ocean and see if she'd turn into an ice cube. He wasn't one to make threats, most times, but she was being unreasonable. After that, she had just sat quietly looking out the window at the ground.  
  
Rogue knew in her heart of hearts that she wanted to go and save Remy. She wanted to be where she was, flying though the icy winds fighting to see in the snow. She wanted Remy back, she wanted to be with him, to let him know she loved him.  
  
But she was someone who couldn't take making apologies for something they thought had been right at the time. She was scared too. She didn't want to see the coldness in his eyes she thought she would find. His love gone in the bitter winds and covered in snow.  
  
But they both pressed on, fighting the urges to go back, each hearing a song in their heads, and remembering what it was they were doing, who they were saving and why.  
  
Remy is an X-Man. They both said silently to themselves. He's one of us, he's proven himself, and his sins of the past haven't reflected upon the good he has done.  
  
He's my heart.  
  
He is my friend.  
  
Ah can't see him dead! Ah won't! He'll be somewhere safe, an' we'll take him home.  
  
Home, to the mansion.  
  
But in both of their minds eyes they both saw him cold and dead, half buried the the snow where Rogue had left him. His eyes frozen open, and icicles hanging from his mouth and nose from the moisture of his freezing breath. He'll be dead as a doornail, something dark and hideous screamed and laughed in the backs of their minds.  
  
He will be fine, something soft and kind also whispered within the music. He will be fine, and when you find him, he will again be whole. But you must find him first.  
  
Yeah, you'll find 'em, but he'll be a popsicle by th' time ya get there! The voice that cracked though the music laughed, and both pushed it to the backs of their minds. Only wanting to hear the music and the kind words of goodness.  
  
"Warren!" Rogue jumped up from her seat and pressed her hands against the glass window of the jet. "Ah see him!" She said, her heart rising. She didn't have to see his face to know it was him, she was sure of it.  
  
Warren set the jet down softly in the snow, and after uncuffing Rogue, both ran out into the frozen tundra to collect their fallen comrade.  
  
Snow had covered his body from the waist down, his clothes--where had he gotten those from?--were soaked, and ice hung to him at every angle. As they reached him, the music stopped. As did the voices. All that mattered was they were here, and so was he, and they were going to bring him home.  
  
Gambit's eyes, heavy with ice, opened slowly as he felt himself being lifted. "Cherie?" He asked unable to believe his eyes, his voice was hoarse from the cold.  
  
"Hush." Rogue said softly looking down at him, a tear froze the her cheek. "We're takin' ya home, Remy. Ta be where ya belong."  
  
"Home? Wit' you?"  
  
"Yes, my friend." Warren said helping Rogue move him into the jet. "You'll be fine." "Home." Gambit said again before falling asleep. 


	5. Part Five

Part Five:  
  
Rogue moved away from the bed where Remy lay sound asleep to where the other X-Men had gathered to hear what his outcome was. Marrow, for once deciding to join the rest of the team, glared at her. The girl couldn't find enough hate in her heart to bare out at Warren, so she focused it on Rogue instead.  
  
Betsy on the other hand, was furious at Warren, and hadn't even come to see it Gambit would live or die. He could rot in Hell for all she cared, and Rogue realized that maybe Hell wasn't flame and fire pits after all. Maybe it was glaciers and ice instead.  
  
Scott and Jean, who couldn't come on account of their being in Alaska, were on the speaker phone, waiting to hear what Hank had to say. Maggot and Cecilia had decided to join them even though they had never know Gambit.  
  
Wolverine was there, leaning against the wall, his arms crossed over his chest, Jubes was beside him, trying her best to keep herself from crying. Bobby stood off from the rest, fuming silently. Storm was just walking into the lab, late due to her own heavy crying. Even as she walked into the room, a crash of of thunder sounded outside. Joe was absent, had been for quite some time. But Rogue didn't care.  
  
Henry, noting everyone was there, sighed in great discomfort. "It is my belief that even had we the Shi'ar equipment in out position, we still wouldn't be able to save his life. I am sorry." He said the words softly, his normal flamboyance gone as he mourned a friend not yet quite dead.  
  
Rogue closed her eyes against her tears. It wasn't supposed to happen this way! He was supposed to recover and the two of them were supposed to live happily ever after... At least they would were this a story in a book.  
  
But this wasn't a story, this wasn't a movie, or a TV show, or even some sort of a comic dreamed up by a man with too much time on his hands. This was real life, cold, hard, and true.  
  
Opening her eyes she found that Marrow had gone. Warren looked shakenly after her, then followed. Jubes was on the floor, her arms wrapped around her knees and her head buried. Wolvie was holding Storm, letting her cry her fill. Bobby even looked close to tears, and on the speaker phone? Soft words from Scott and the muffled tears of Jean.  
  
Rogue was the only one without tears it seemed. She just stood there, no expression on her face, then she turned and walked back to where Remy's bed was. His eyes were open and sad, making her realize that he hadn't been sleeping after all, and that he had heard every word.  
  
She knelt by his bed, smiling although it wasn't necessary. He tried to smile back, but he couldn't quite manage it. "Rogue, I c'n' feel my legs." He whispered, his voice had long since given out on him. His eyes which had once shown bright and fiery, making you wonder it you were staring straight into the pits of Hell, were dull and seemed almost pink. His hair had turned white, and the fine muscles of his body were gone, sagged into nothingness from his lack of exercise the past month since she and Warren and brought him home.  
  
"An' it cold. Turn up de heat?" She did as he asked, knowing he wouldn't be asking for much anymore.  
  
"Remy, ah-" She started. But he knew what was coming and weakly he shook his head.  
  
"Non. Don' say it," he said pleadingly. "I love you, cherie."  
  
"Ah love you too." She whispered just as low as he. A tear finally fell down her face. "Ah've always loved ya, an' Ah always will." She moved closer, so their faces were only inches apart. She saw the confusion in his eyes, then it turned into realization.  
  
"Cherie, non-"  
  
But it was too late. She kissed him goodbye. Long and hard, feeling his powers slip into her, his mind, his life from his years on the street, to his time in the Arctic, flashing before her eyes. What she saw, the pain he had to live with, made her cry harder as she felt his life slipping away. In one last flash of strength, Remy's hand came up, and pressed her head forward. As they kissed, the other X-men knowing nothing, music filled the air, a soft song that filled the moment.  
  
I'm alone yeah I don't know if I can face the night I'm in tears and the cryin' that I do is for you I want your love let's break the wall between us Don't make it tough, I'll put away my pride Enough's enough, I've suffered and I've seen the light  
  
Baby, you're my angel come and save me tonight You're my angel come and make it alright  
  
Don't know what I'm gonna do about this feeling inside Yes, it's true loneliness took me for a ride, yeah, yeah yeah Without your love, I'm nothin but a beggar Without your love, a dog without a bone What can I do, I'm sleepin in this bed alone  
  
Baby, you're my angel come and save me tonight You're my angel come and make it alright Come and save me tonight  
  
You're the reason I live You're the reason I die You're the reason I give when I break down and cry Don't need no reason why  
  
Baby, baby, baby you're my angel come and save me tonight You're my angel come and make it alright You're my angel come and save me tonight You're my angel come and take me for a ride Come and save me tonight  
  
Rogue moved away from the dead body, and wrapped her arms around herself, seeing from two sets of eyes, and thinking with two sets of minds.  
  
I love you Cherie.  
  
Ah love ya too, ya old Cajun. She smiled with two sets of lips. And inside both minds, they pictured themselves together, holding hands, without gloves, in a place where it never grew cold. 


	6. Part Six: End

Epilogue:  
  
Up, up, up, above the clouds, above the sky. Farther then the stars and planets below, a tiny woman sat on the edge of glowing whiteness. Her legs dangled below her, and she softly kicked at a star that had gotten too close.  
  
Amanda sighed as she saw what was happening down below. It had been close, getting Rogue and Warren to go after Gambit, but they had made it happen. At least that was something to be happy about, but they had gotten there too late.  
  
He wasn't supposed to die, at least his body wasn't. He was scheduled to live much longer, have a few children, save a few lives. But it hadn't worked out quite that way, perhaps, what had been done was better, in a sense.  
  
He was not only with the one and only woman he had ever loved, but he was now part of her. They would never be separated, and she knew they would find a way to be together, even if Rogue had to collapse and withdraw into her own mind.  
  
Luke came up, hearing her sigh, and sat down beside her. "Sorry I made it so tough," he said softly, having gotten rid of his evil voice. "I really wanted them back together you know."  
  
"I know," the younger angel sighed again, wishing life was like a story book and that things could just go to the best always. But it wasn't and it wouldn't be anytime soon. "You 'ave your job t' do, and I have mine. Besides, I don' t'ink you did it half as much as you should 'ave. You jus' barely beat though de music."  
  
He smiled, and put an arm around her, "Yeah, even devils have a hard time trying not to let good things go to their hearts. I just wish you had won this one."  
  
"And who says she didn't?" Five voices chorused from behind. The two turned to see Sunshine, David, Amy, Kat, and Kim putting down their instruments and walk towered them. "We say she did a pretty good job," they all said.  
  
Luke smiled. "Well, now you can only go one higher for compliments as good as that," he said placing a kiss on her forehead. "Maybe I didn't win after all. You never know."  
  
"At least we won't until we go have a talk with the Big Guy. I hope he's not mad."  
  
Sunshine scuffed. "Him mad? Never. A bit disappointed maybe, but he's never been mad."  
  
"Well," David had to put it, "there was that time with the flood." They laughed and all walked together into the light  
  
***. Somewhere out there, in this world, or maybe another, someone is hearing music and their heart is clearing. Out there somewhere, someone's Guardian Angel is holding their hand though the hard times in life. 


End file.
